


The Thief, The Painter, And The Boy

by brian_owo



Series: Freckled Siblings AU (yes that's what I'm calling it) [1]
Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon)
Genre: And they are adorable, Angst, Child Abandonment, Child Neglect, Cuz Gothel is a terrible mother, F/M, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Kidnapping, Moon Powers Varian (Disney), Pascal is kind of here?, Rapunzel and Varian are Siblings (Disney), Swearing, Varian has a shitty life, Varian isn't really shown to be an alchemist until later on, all from Gothel of course, i'll add tags as i go, mention of burns, we don't stan
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-24
Updated: 2020-04-23
Packaged: 2021-03-01 02:01:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,052
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23297449
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brian_owo/pseuds/brian_owo
Summary: Rapunzel and Varian have lived in a tower all of their lives. That is, until a certain thief decided to climb it.Soooo...yeah. In honor of Varian's birthday, I made this edgy story! It's pretty much just a what if the moonstone was used on Varian and was also kidnapped by Gothel kind of AU.
Relationships: Eugene Fitzherbert | Flynn Rider/Rapunzel
Series: Freckled Siblings AU (yes that's what I'm calling it) [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1675450
Comments: 28
Kudos: 233





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! You showed some form of interest in my story! I must be doing something right, huh? I just wanted to pop in and say I will try to update at least once a week? Also, sorry for the angst.

"Flower gleam and glow. Let your power shine. Make the clock reverse. Bring back what once was-" Gothel began to sing but stopped as soon as she saw the baby's glowing golden lock turn into a dull brown color. Gothel panicked, all she needed was a piece of the flower, just so she could live and stay young forever, but as she heard the baby begin to cry and the sound of footsteps rapidly growing louder, she scooped the baby in her arms and fled out the window. She quickly leaped on her horse and strode back to her home, where her daughter was waiting for her.

Cassandra was around four when her mother left to run her daily errands. She knew the routine by now, mother leaves, Cassandra does most of the housework and waits for her mom to get back. When she does, she makes a quick meal, they would eat together, and it was off to bed. But today was different, she could feel it. As she was sweeping and humming along with her music box, she heard a horse neigh just outside her home. She looked outside her small window and saw mer mother on her horse, holding what she assumed to be a child in her arms. Gothel looked at her for a split second, debating if she should grab her daughter as well and take her with her, before deciding otherwise. She looked down at the child in her arms before running off towards a different direction. Cassandra felt her heart shatter at that moment. Her own mother, who gave birth to her and raised her, just left her alone. It wasn't like she had any siblings or even a father figure to help her out. She was alone...

She felt tears bubble in her eyes, blurring her vision. She saw a shadow approach her and put a big hand on her shoulder, an attempt to comfort her. She couldn't hold it in anymore and let her tears slide down her face. The man hugged her, only making her begin to sob in his arms.

Gothel continued running away from the guards, rapidly making sharp turns every now and then, hoping to throw them off. After a few minutes, she no longer heard the sounds of horse's hooves, other than her own horse's of course. She made her way towards a hidden tower she used to live in decades before she even set foot in Corona. She used a hidden staircase that was hidden at the bottom of the tower. She decided that it would be best to hide her flower away from everyone else. When her flower was first found by another person, they ripped it away from her, almost destroying it. She was lucky the flower was passed on to a child and wasn't completely destroyed, but she couldn't take that chance anymore.

She knew that she couldn't let anyone know about her flower. Nor could her flower know of anyone else. However, it all changed when she caught wind of something called The Moondrop.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gothel brings home another baby and Rapunzel is excited to have another person around the house.

Rapunzel was four when her mother left her tower longer than she usually did. She would leave for a few hours, a day at most, but she was gone for almost a week. Rapunzel was worried that maybe she got lost or god forbid something worse. She was running low on food and she was too scared to leave her tower, seeing as there were no stairs and her hair was nowhere near long enough to help her leave the almost forty foot tower. Rapunzel just took a cheap paint brush her mother recently brought her and began to sketch on her bedroom wall. Her mother of course didn't know she would do this. For all Gothel knew, she would paint on the paper she provided and it stopped there. Paintings weren't the only thing she hid from her mother. She recently found a small chameleon in trouble and saved him. She let him free first, but he kept coming back and ended up never leaving her side. He was good company while mother was away.

She hoped her mother would return soon. Her wish seemed to be granted as she heard her mother appear in the basement. She of course was not allowed down there. What she didn't expect was to hear a high-pitched crying coming from under the floors as well. She ran downstairs and saw her mother carrying something in a bundle of blankets. She seemed to be on edge, as she clutched whatever it was she was carrying in her arms. 

"Mom! You're back!" Rapunzel smiled as her mother turned to face her. "What's that?" She asked as she pointed towards the blankets in her arms.

"This? Oh, Rapunzel, this is a baby.”

"A..baby?"

"Yes, my flower. A baby. His name is Varian, and he's your new baby brother," Gothel explained to her young daughter. Rapunzel's eyes widened as she made eye contact with the baby in her arms, making the baby stop crying as his eyes mimicked Rapunzel's eyes in size.

"Hi, Varian. My name is Rapunzel, and you're my new brother," Rapunzel explained to the boy. He reached out to grab her face in curiosity. Rapunzel giggled as he instead rapped his hand around one of her fingers.

"He seems to like you. Here, take care of him for a bit while I make us some soup. You said you like hazelnuts, right?" Rapunzel nodded as Gothel shoved the baby into her arms. She began to rock him back and forth, analyzing his face. She noticed that his eyes were a bit more different from hers or Gothel's. His eyes were an icy blue, almost white, that emitted a soft glow. Rapunzel somehow couldn't tear her eyes away from his, making the boy a bit uncomfortable and he began to tear up.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Varian, I didn't mean to stare! Mother always says it's rude for a lady to stare," Rapunzel apologized as she made her way to her room. She set the boy down on her bed and pointed at a few paintings hidden near one of the wall's corners.

"Mother doesn't know that I do this. I know she says I should never keep secrets, especially from her. But this can be our little secret! Do you promise you'll keep it?" She asked the small figure who replied with aimless babbling. She smiled as she hid the paintings with a thick curtain.

"You know, Varian...I think I trust you more than I trust mother. You won't yell at me when I do something you don't like, right?" Rapunzel was just so excited to have someone else in her life other than her mother. Don't get her wrong, she loved her mother, but the way the boy smiled at her and the way he stared in awe at her paintings made her feel like they would be close siblings.

The chameleon she dubbed Pascal crawled out of hiding and stared at the unfamiliar figure on the bed. Rapunzel held out her arms as Pascal jumped onto her palms. She brought him close to the boy who stared in wonder at the creature he had never seen before.

"This is Pascal," she explained. "He is a chameleon, and my best friend." The boy stretched out his arms to pet the reptile.

Gothel didn't know what the moonstone was capable of, but she knew it was heavily involved with the sundrop, so she knew it might help her out in some way. She knew how to activate the flower's powers. She simply had to sing a specific song, and she would gain her youth back. However, she didn't know how to activate the moon's power. Hell, she didn't even know what it could do. She hoped that maybe it would be a copy of the sundrop and help her keep her youth, or maybe help her out in some other way. She wasn't exactly thrilled to be forced to raise another child, seeing as Rapunzel was a handful already, and she could only imagine how difficult it would be to raise a boy.

* * *

To say Gothel was frustrated was an understatement. She had no idea how to activate the moondrop's power. She tried to brush his hair and chant the same song she would sing to Rapunzel, but it did not work. She tried to cut the moon's hair, but there was no reaction. She began to think that she was tricked somehow and the boy did not hold the moondrop's power. That was until she heard a startled cry coming from the boy. Gothel caught him huddled in a corner, curling in on himself. She didn't understand at first until she saw a large black rock piercing the floor.

"What happened, my moon?" Gothel had asked the boy.

"It- It just sprouted out of nowhere, I-" Varian yelped as another pierced next to him. This rock wasn't like the other, however. This one was red and you could practically feel the power radiating from it.

"The moon," Gothel whispered. This was the moon's doing. "Fascinating," she stared in awe at the rock. She turned her face to look at the boy, tears streaming down his face. He was only four, and she couldn't even imagine what he must be feeling.

"Don't be scared, my child. This is a wonderful thing. You are special, my dear," she hugged her son. She had heard of these rocks. The moondrop would summon these rocks all around a place called The Dark Kingdom. They were said to be indestructible, but she had never seen any books covering the red rocks.

"Here," she grabbed his hand and placed it on the first rock. "I want you to focus on it and try to imagine it going down." The boy looked at her for a few seconds before doing what she said. He closed his eyes and put his forehead on the rock, before the rock began to retract and leave behind a hole where the rock once stood.

"Do you think you can do that to the other rock?" Gothel asked Varian in the softest tone she could muster. He nodded and the rock began to descend like the previous one. "Good job, my precious moon!" She praised him while she wiped away his tear tracks. He looked up and smiled at her. She chuckled a bit at how dorky he looked.

"I love you very much, dear," She whispered in his hair.

"I love you more," he replied.

"I love you most."

* * *

Rapunzel had been busy all day. She was doing her daily chores when she realized that she had left the broom in the dining room. She ran out of her room only to crash into Varian head first. They both fell backwards awkwardly. Rapunzel was about to apologize until she noticed that she was no longer in her tower, but instead in a small house. She saw a tall man and a petite woman standing at his side, cradling what seemed to be a baby that was covered in blankets. She also saw her mother with a smirk on her face.

"What do you want, Gothel?" The man's deep voice boomed. It was clear her mother was not welcome here.

"I am here to reclaim my end of the bargain," Gothel slowly made her way towards the woman, before being stopped by the man.

"The moondrop was destroyed. I'm sorry, but I can't hold up my end of the bargain. But I'm sure we can make it up to you some other way," the man tried to reason with Gothel.

"Oh, no, Quirin. You see, I have seen this happen before. In return for saving your baby, I will take it for myself-" Gothel began. "No! Please no!" The woman clutched the baby in her arms. The man stepped in front of the woman. "Absolutely not!" The man answered.

"I'm sorry, but I don't think you have a choice," Gothel snatched the baby from the woman's arms as she cried out for her son.

"No! Varian!" the woman cried. "Varian, huh? What a... unique name," Gothel commented with a sour look. "I'll be taking my leave now," Gothel informed them as she made her way out of the house. The man pulled a dagger out of his boot and lunged at Gothel, only to be met with strange dust she had thrown at his face. The man immediately fell to the floor, and the woman once again cried out for her family.

Rapunzel was automatically back in the tower, staring at a shocked Varian.

While Rapunzel was seeing a glimpse of Varian's past, Varian saw a glimpse of Rapunzel's future. He didn't see as much as Rapunzel saw, but he did see an older Rapunzel chained up and being dragged to the basement by a furious mother. He was flashed back to an equally shocked Rapunzel. She blurted out many apologies about how she should have seen where he was going.

"It's okay, Rapunzel." "Are you sure? You're not hurt, are you?" She asked, checking his head for any major injuries. He smiled a bit, seeing how his sister overreacted when he got hurt. It was good to know that she cared.

"No, I'm good," he didn't think he should tell her what he had seen. "What about you? Are you okay?" Rapunzel paused for a second, debating whether or not to tell him. She decided against it and said, "Yeah. I'm fine. I'm just...a bit shaken up." And they both left it at that.

* * *

  
  


Ever since that day, Rapunzel became even more intrigued with the outside world. She would wonder why she got that vision. For the past fifteen years, Mother had always told her the horrors that were in the outside world. The ruffians, quick sand, snakes, thieves, plagues, the list goes on. But the people she saw didn't look dangerous at all. They didn't look like the sketches Mother had shown her or the books mother would read to her. It fascinated her. She found herself sketching the figures from her dream one day. She doesn't know why she hadn't painted them before, and she was a bit frustrated that she could no longer remember how they looked like clearly. She decided to paint them in a happy position instead of them being distressed like they were in her vision. She almost didn't hear her brother enter her room and sit down next to her.

Ever since Varian got his vision, he wanted to protect Rapunzel. He knew that his vision was probably another one of Mother's sick punishments, and knowing how curious Rapunzel was, he was sure she had done something that enraged Mother so much that she would tie her up and drag her down into the basement. He began taking the blame for anything and everything his mother would get mad at. He hoped that maybe if he would take the blame for everything, he could prevent his vision from coming true. Maybe it was a warning the universe gave him to stop Rapunzel from getting hurt. However, taking the blame came with a lot of negative consequences. His body was always littered with bruises from when his mother would strike him or he would crash into something as he was backing away from her, but it was a price he had to pay in order to keep his sister safe. Speaking of which, he wanted to see what she was up to, so he went and looked around the tower for her.

"Who are they?" Varian asked Rapunzel as he sat down next to her. She set down her paintbrush and thought whether or not she should tell Varian about her vision? Flashback? Dream? She didn't know if she should even reveal that those two people were Varian's biological parents.

"They're... they're people from a vision I had almost a year ago," She explained.

"Vision?" Varian asked her. "Yes. You probably don't remember, but we bumped into each other one time, and I saw them," Rapunzel pointed to the people in her painting, "and I saw Mother as well. She took the baby from them...and I think.. I think you were the baby." Varian's breath hitched.

"I mean, I knew I wasn't mamma's kid, but I didn't... what- what else do you know about them?" Varian asked. "I'm sorry, Varian. It was almost a year ago, I can't even remember exactly what they looked like. I should have told you earlier.. I'm so sorry," Rapunzel felt guilt tug at her chest. She should have told him before.

Rapunzel was about to apologize again, but Varian spoke before her. "I had one too.." This shocked Rapunzel. What if her Mother isn't actually her mother either? What if Varian saw her getting kidnapped as well?

"It- it wasn't what you think. I didn't see your past," Varian clarified. "... I saw you and mother," Varian said slowly. "You were chained up and mother was pulling you down into the basement and she looked furious. You were older and I don't know if it was a look into the future or a warning or what. I don't want you to get hurt," Varian finished. Rapunzel was scared, she wasn't going to lie. She didn't know how to respond, but she obviously didn't want to make Varian any more upset.

"Hey, I'm sure it was nothing to worry about," Rapunzel offered. Varian looked back up at the painting on their wall.

"Let's hope so."

  
  


* * *

  
  


"Varian, can you do something for me?" A seventeen year old Rapunzel asked her thirteen year old brother.

"Of course! What do you need?" Varian asked her, fumbling with some chemicals on his small desk.

"I was wondering if you could find a way to cut my hair and still have it keep its magical ability. It's so long now, and such a hassle to brush, and we all have tripped over it more than once," Rapunzel chuckled a bit.

"I don't know, Rapunzel. Mother wouldn't want me experimenting on your hair. I mean, what if I damage it somehow?" Varian refused. "Besides, I don't know where I would start."

"I know it's so out of the blue, but think of it as a birthday present!" Rapunzel said. Varian had forgotten that Rapunzel's birthday was in a week, and he didn't know what he would give her that year, so after about a minute of thought, he agreed to make a machine and find out what he could do about it. Rapunzel thanked him and hugged the unenthusiastic boy.

* * *

"Okay..just put a few strands of hair in here, and the machine should theoretically tell us what your hair is made of. Once we have that information, I'll be able to accurately find a way to cut your hair and still be able to preserve your hair's natural magic," Varian said as he put a few strands into a machine that took up half of his desk. It had taken almost a week to design, get materials, and build the machine. Not that Rapunzel was complaining. "However, I will also need a bit of hair that isn't golden to see if it still holds some form of magic, even though it no longer glows."

Raunzel's hand instinctively touched the short hair that had been cut when she was younger. Her mother had told her it was a group of ruffians who wanted to steal her and cut off all of her hair. She honestly didn't even know if she still believes her story.

Rapunzel was hesitant at first, but handed him a nearby pair of scissors. He held the scissors close to the other hair that had lost its color and she closed her eyes, waiting for a "snip" sound that never came. Instead, she heard Mother's screeching voice.

"What do you think you're doing, boy?" She tightly clutched Varians wrist, causing him to drop the scissors and try to break his hand away. She twisted his wrist and pushed him away, causing him to crash into his desk and having some of his chemicals to fall and land on his arms. Varian cried out in pain as he felt his skin begin to burn up.

"Mother, stop! Please, it was my fault! I asked him to cut my hair. It's my fault, not his!" Rapunzel tried to deflect the blame off of Varian and onto herself.

"No! It's not true! I forced her to let me cut her hair so I can experiment on it. This is all my fault," Varian argued. Gothel grabbed his arm once more and brought him to a small closet where he threw him inside and locked the door. Rapunzel ran and tried to unlock said door, but stopped when she felt her cheek sting. Her mother stood next to her with her hand raised. 

Rapunzel couldn't comprehend what had happened. This could have been avoided if she had just kept quiet. If she hadn't complained to Varian about a minor pet peeve of hers. If she had just listened to Varian, none of this would have happened.

"You'll stay in there for the next three days, and I hope you ate today, because I don't feed disobedient children!" Her mother screamed towards the closet. "It'll do good for you. Let's just say the moon's been getting fuller," she chuckled. Rapunzel could hear faint crying coming from inside. "And you-" Gothel looked at the stunned Rapunzel.

"You will stay in your room and you will not step foot outside until I tell you so," she screamed at Rapunzel who scrambled to her feet. Rapunzel ran upstairs to her room and collapsed on her bed. It didn't help seeing all of Varian's belongings scattered across the floor. She just sobbed even harder. Her birthday was the next day, and now she knew she'd have to spend it alone.

* * *

Rapunzel opened her eyes to find the tower to be silent. She looked over at Varian's side of their room, hoping everything was just some twisted nightmare. She would just see him passed out on his desk and everything would be alright. However, she did not see him in the room. The floor was still littered with broken glass and the floor tiles were burnt from the chemicals that were dropped. The machine that Varian had built for her was smashed and beaten on his desk. She turned around towards the sound of footsteps that were approaching her room. Her mother appeared at the entrance with an apologetic expression. She could barely see her mother approach her in the dark room. She didn't even realize she had slept the afternoon away. 

"I'm sorry for what happened earlier, my flower. But you know how dangerous your brother's inventions are, not to mention how clumsy he can be. I couldn't imagine what I would do if you got hurt," Her mother explained. "I just want to protect you. You understand that, don't you?"

Her mother sat down next to her on her bed, holding both of her hands. Rapunzel only nodded.

"You know, your birthday is in, what, two, three days, right? I don't think I ever asked you what you wanted," her mother tried to change the subject.

"Does letting Varian out count as a birthday present?" Rapunzel tried. Her mother's expression turned grim for a second before saying, "I'm sorry, Rapunzel, but the boy needs to learn his lesson." Rapunzel's hopeful expression dropped. "Is there something else you would like for your birthday?" Her mother tried.

Rapunzel thought for a moment before answering, "Maybe some more paint? The ones made from the white shells you once brought me?" Her mother smiled and ran her hair down Rapunzel's face.

"Of course, my flower. I'll leave first thing tomorrow. Now, get some rest," Her mother said as she got up from the bed and made her way out of the room.

"I love you, my flower."

"I love you more."

"I love you most."

* * *

  
  
  


The next morning, her mother told her that she would take a while, seeing as the trip would take almost three days just to get to the market that sells the paint. Before she left, she also gave Rapunzel a key that unlocked the closet Varain was in, only after Rapunzel swore not to let him out for another day. Rapunzel packed her mother a few clothing items and some food for her week of traveling.

"I'll see you in a few days, Rapunzel," Her mother said as she descended down the tower. They shouted their usual "I love you"s, and Rapunzel sprang into action.

She unhooked her hair and made her way towards the closet. She took the small silver key and jammed it into the closet's keyhole. She unlocked it and found a passed out Varian inside. She felt terrible seeing him like that. He had been cramped in a small space for hours, not being able to move an inch. She shook his shoulder, waking him up. He jolted up and backed away the best he could, considering his back was already touching the closet's wall.

"Rapunzel? What- what are you doing? If mother catches you, she'll-" "She won't," Rapunzel interrupted him, "Mother is out getting me my birthday present, and she won't be back for almost a whole week. We're free to do what we want for a week," Rapunzel beamed. Varian took a second to process everything before he let out a small laugh.

"Are- Are you sure?" Varain cautiously asked. She nodded and helped him to his feet.

"We're free for a week. We can do whatever we want!"

  
  


"We can even go see the lights."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry for the angst ;-;
> 
> Also, for plot reasons, Varian doesn't ask Gothel about his parents. Well, I guess he's just too scared to ask.
> 
> (Next chapter includes Eugene, so look out for that one)


	3. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Flynn escapes a scary lady and her horse only to find a tower that was inhabited by two strange siblings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was able to write Cassandra in >:))
> 
> Um, just as a heads up, there is some light swearing in this chapter

Flynn has been running from the guards his whole life. He knew how to get them off his track, and could easily do so. So, it was no big deal when guards began chasing him after he stole the princess’ crown. He was easily outrunning them, especially after he ditched the brothers. 

He turned around for a second to see how many guards were chasing him. He saw only a handful of guards chasing him. He sighed a breath of relief before he heard a familiar horse and voice.

“Be reasonable, Rider. You can’t escape the law,” Cassandra yelled from Maximus’ back. He cursed under his breath. He began making sharper turns and going through areas where a horse would have trouble crossing. The other guards stopped chasing him, but Cassandra and Maximus were still on his back. She got down from Max and continued to chase him on foot.

She caught up with him and reached out for his satchel. They fought for a bit before the satchel was flung and landed on a thin branch at the edge of a cliff. All three of them stared at each other before they all lunged at the branch.

Flynn managed to grab the satchel, but Cassandra once again got hold of the satchel. They fought for a bit before they heard a nervous neigh that came from Maximus. They turned their heads only to hear a loud “snap” that came from the branch.

They all screamed as they fell from the high cliff and as the branch was snapped in half when it made contact with a large rock on the side of the cliff.

Max and Cassandra landed together at the bottom of the cliff. They composed themselves and began searching for the thief.

Flynn peeked up from behind a rock, keeping his eyes on the woman and the horse as he slowly backed up. He leaned on a rock that was covered with vines, only to fall through it. He saw Maximus’ silhouette approach the rock and he froze on the spot.

“What is it, Max? Did you see him?” Cassandra’s silhouette appeared next to the horse. He shook his head and began to sniff at the grass as if he were a bloodhound. Flynn was relieved when the horse moved in the opposite direction.

He turned around to see a huge tower in the center of a green field.

“This’ll be the perfect place to hide,” he thought to himself. He would just stay there for a bit, let the news about the stolen crown die down for a bit, and he could go back to the capital as if nothing had happened. “The tower should be a safe place to hide in. It’s hidden fairly well, and who in their right mind would climb a forty foot tower to look for a petty thief?” He thought as he climbed up the tower.

When he managed to make it to the entrance, he grabbed his satchel to make sure the stolen crown was still in its place. He opened it and was relieved when he saw the crown resting inside his bag.

“Alone at last-” He said before he was knocked out by a foreign object.

When he regained consciousness, he heard faint whispers. He tried to get up, only to realize he was unable to move. He opened his eyes to see he was still inside the tower. The whispers stopped and he realized what was constricting him from moving.

“Is this...hair?” He asked himself. But that’s not possible. No human being has hair long enough to not only tie his arms and torso to a chair, but also to hang around the tower as if they were banners.

“Strug- struggling is pointless,” a feminine voice said from above. He saw a figure jump down to land a few feet in front of him.

“I know why you’re here, and I’m not afraid of you,” the figure said, slowly approaching him. “What?” He was honestly confused beyond belief.

The figure stepped out of the dark to reveal a gorgeous blonde girl holding a frying pan in both of her arms. She continued to approach him as if he was a dangerous animal.

“Who are you and how did you find us?” He just stared in awe, realizing that all the hair that hung around the tower belonged to her. She repeated herself, confidence slowly growing in her voice.

“I know not who you are, nor how I came to find you. But may I just say…hi,” he put on the best face he could, “How you doing? The name’s Flynn Rider. How’s your day going? Huh?”

She stared in confusion before snapping out of it. “Who else knows our location, Flynn Rider?”

“Alright, blondie,” “Rapunzel,” the girl corrects. “Gesundheit. Here’s the deal. I- wait did you say our?” He realizes. The girl’s eyes widened a bit before saying, “No, no I said me. I asked who else knew my location.” He was about to object before he noticed a set of glowing blue eyes. Based on how low the pair of eyes were, he assumed that they were a kid.

“Hey, kid, you’re probably more rational than she is. Can- can you talk to her for me?” He asked the pair of eyes. The child hid behind a wooden plank and Rapunzel had an angry look in her eyes.

“Don’t talk to him,” she snapped at him. “How did you find us?” She repeated yet another time. Flynn turned his attention back towards Rapunzel. “Okay listen, I was in a situation, I was being chased by some bad people. I came across your tower and… wait, where is my satchel?!” Eugene looked around the room for any sign of his satchel or the crown. Rapunzel put on a smug look and crossed her arms.

“I’ve hidden it. Somewhere you will never find it,” Rapunzel smirked. Eugene looked around once again, noticing an oddly placed pot.

“It’s in that pot, isn’t it?” Flynn deadpanned only to be hit by a pan.

“Did you kill him?” Varian shrieked from the place he was hiding. They were just drawing together when a man broke into their tower. Rapunzel wanted Varian to wait in their room to ensure his safety, but a stubborn Varian offered to stay hidden nearby her in case the man attacked her.

"No, I didn’t kill him. He’s just...sleeping,” Rapunzel said. She was a bit embarrassed the man managed to find out where she had hidden the satchel he carried with him. “Hey, Varian, can you get the satchel from the pot?” She asked her little brother. He grabbed the bag from the pot and handed it to Rapunzel. “What could be inside that made the man want it back so badly?” Rapunzel thought out loud.

“I’m not sure. It wouldn’t hurt to take a peek, right?” Varian asked the older girl.

She opened it to find a crown that looked straight out of a fairytale book. She turned it in her hand, admiring the small details the crown had.

“Try it on!” Varian encouraged. She stepped in front of a mirror and placed the crown on her head.

“Wow...you look like a princess,” Varian complemented her. Pascal wasn’t as enthusiastic as Varian, however.

“No, I don’t think so. I bet you would, though!” She said as she placed the crown on Varian who giggled in response. They played with the crown for a bit before putting it back into the bag.

Rapunzel thought for a second where to hide the satchel before seeing her chameleon point towards the stairs.

“You want me to hide it in our room?” She asked Pascal, who shook his head no. “Do you want me to hide it inside the stairs?” Pascal nodded before trying to pull the top of a step off. She helped remove the top of the step to see it was hollow. She gently placed the bag inside and pulled the top back on.

“Pascal, do you think you can wake him up?” She asked her friend who crawled on the man’s shoulder.

Eugene woke up at the feeling of something in his ears. He looked on his shoulder to find a reptile with its tongue in his ear. He screamed and the animal fell off in surprise.

“Now it’s hidden where you’ll never find it. So, what do you want with my hair? To cut it? Sell it?” She held her frying pan close to his face.

“Cut? What? No! Listen, the only thing I want to do with your hair is get out of it, literally!” He was confused as to why she thinks he would want her hair.

She was stunned and looked behind her for a second and asked, “You...don’t want my hair?”

“Why the hell would I want your hair? Look, I was being chased, I saw a tower, I climbed it. End of story,” he clarified.

“You’re...telling the truth?” She asked the man. “Yes!” He just wanted to be free of her hair, it was honestly grossing him out.

“I don’t believe you,” she said as she brought her hands to her hips.

“What if you do the thing?” Varian asked.

“What thing?” Flynn asked. Rapunzel thought for a second before she made her way towards him and put her forehead onto his. To say it was awkward was an understatement. Rapunzel saw him running away from a horse and a woman only to see the tower with wide eyes. He climbed it and she saw herself slam her frying pan into the back of his skull.

“Okay,  _ Flynn Rider _ , so I suppose your story holds up,” she remarked as she backed away from him. She looked at her brother and just said, “Your turn.”

She pushed the boy towards him and he mimicked her actions. He clashed their foreheads together for a few seconds before he backed away and whispered, “They’re lanterns…”

“The what?” Rapunzel asked the boy. If Flynn was confused before, now he was confused². 

“Can someone tell me what’s going on?” Flynn blurted out.

“Ask him about the lights,” Varian told his sister. Rapunzel jumped onto her fireplace and moved the curtains above it to reveal a painting of a girl outside and looking at the lantern festival from far away.

"Do you know what these are?" She asked the tied up man.

“You- you mean the lantern thing they do for the princess?” He asked. “Yeah, they do it every year. What about it?”

“Lanterns...I knew they weren’t stars. Um, tomorrow evening, they will light the night sky with these  _ lanterns _ . You will act as our guide and take us to these lanterns and then return us home safely. Then, I will give you back your satchel.”

“Um...no can do. You see, the kingdom and I aren’t exactly sympatico at the moment, so I won’t be taking you anywhere.” Flynn said with a smirk on his face. “I’m sorry to disappoint, Blondie,” he added.

Rapunzel brought him closer to him and stared him dead in the eye. “Listen,  _ Flynn Rider, _ if you want to ever see your precious satchel again, you will lead us to the lanterns. If you refuse, I will destroy it with whatever it is you had inside by sundown,” Rapunzel warned. Even Varian was intimidated by the tone of voice she used, and she wasn’t even mad at him!

“Okay, okay. Let me get this straight. I take you two to see the lanterns, bring you back home, you’ll give me my satchel back?” Flynn asked, fear lining his voice.

“I promise,” Rapunzel says. When Flynn shot her an unimpressed look, she added, “And when I promise something, I never,  _ ever _ break that promise.  _ Ever _ .” Flynn looked behind her to where the boy stood. He nodded rapidly, confirming what she was saying.

“Okay, listen. I really didn’t want to do this, but you give me no choice. Here comes the smoulder,” he warned the girl. He made a face that confused the blonde. What was making an uncomfortable face gonna do to her?

“Do...do you need to use the bathroom?” Varian asked, chuckling a bit. Flynn flushed in embarrassment.

“What? No, I- ugh! Fine, I’ll take you guys to see the lanterns,” Flynn said, giving up. Rapunzel beamed, accidentally dropping the chair that Flynn was tied to.

“Oops!”

**  
  
**

“You broke my smoulder!”

**  
  
  
  
  
**

Flynn found the arrows he used to climb up the tower and used them to climb back down until he saw a long strand of hair fall down next to him. It was long enough to reach the bottom of the tower and presumably still have some to spare where the girl was. 

“How the hell does someone grow so much hair?” Flynn thought to himself, continuing to climb down the tower.

Meanwhile, Rapunzel and Varian were still at the entrance of said tower, both hesitating. Rapunzel told Varian to wrap his arms around her so she would bring them both down. 

“Are...are you sure you want to go?” Rapunzel asked her brother. 

“There’s no backing down now,” he reassured her. 

They both took a deep breath and Rapunzel took a leap of faith. She cheered while Varian screamed the whole way down, before Rapunzel stopped, inches above the grass. She stared at it with wide eyes, hesitating once more. She slowly stood on the grass, amazed by the new feeling of something other than tile or wood underneath her feet.

“Does- Does it hurt?” Varian asked. He knew it was a stupid question based on his sister’s expression, but he just wanted to be sure. Rapunzel only smiled and brought him down to see for himself. Unlike Rapunzel, however, Varian wasn’t barefoot, so he couldn’t feel the grass at first. He sat down and began patting down at the grass with his bare hands. He was so in wonder that he forgot about the burns, causing him to flinch away. He looked around to see if anyone noticed, but only saw Rapunzel begin to sprint and sing towards a pond. He smiled as she stepped in the water, causing her to giggle.

“Varian, I can’t believe we did this! Oh, this is the best thing I could have ever asked for!” Rapunzel said as she made her way over to him. Varian wished he was as optimistic as Rapunzel, but he couldn’t help but worry about what his mother would think.

“What if mother finds out?” Varian asked her. Her eyebrows furrow a bit, before smiling at him.

“She’ll be gone for days! As long as we don’t say anything, she won’t find out,” Rapunzel explained. “Wow, look at that tree!” She exclaimed as she began to climb a tall tree.

“But as soon as you see the lights, we come straight back here, right, Rapunzel?” He asked his sister, but when he looked at the tree she was no longer there. “Rapunzel?” He called out her name, before he saw her swinging around the tree.

“I am  _ never  _ going back!” She yelled as Flynn approached them.

“You okay, kid?” Flynn asked him when he saw Varian’s worried look.

“Yeah, I just- I don’t want her to get in trouble. Mother had always warned us about the outside world. She doesn’t want us to get hurt, and I’m sure she’ll be furious if she finds out we left without her supervision,” he answered. Flynn saw an opening to make them back down on their deal and tried to persuade them into giving up on their journey.

“Listen, kid. I’m only picking up bits and pieces. You know, forbidden road trip, overprotective mother. I mean, this is serious stuff! But let me tell you, this is all part of growing up. A little rebellion, a little adventure, that’s good, healthy even!” He started.

“It is?” Varian asked the thief. “Yes. I mean, does your precious mother deserve it? No. Would this break her heart and crush her soul? Of course! But you’ve just got to do it,” Flynn finished with a smirk.

“We’re gonna break her heart?” Varian shakenly asked.

“In half,” he answered as he picked a grape from a nearby bush.

“Crush her soul?”

“Like a grape,” Flynn deadpanned, crushing the grape between his two fingers.

“She  _ would  _ be heartbroken. You’re right,” Varian realized as he held his hands close to his chest.

“I am, aren’t I? Oh, man,” Flynn put on the saddest face he could muster, “All right. I can’t believe I’m saying this...but I’m letting you guys out of the deal.”

“W-Wait, what?” Varian couldn’t let this happen. He was worried, sure. But he would take any of mother’s punishments to let Rapunzel live out her dream.

“That’s right, but please, don’t thank me. Just tell your sister to get down, we can turn around and get you two home. Here’s her pan and here’s her frog,” he shoved Pascal and a frying pan towards him. “I get back my satchel, you guys get back a loving relationship with your mother based on mutual trust, and voila! We all part ways as unlikely friends!”

“No!” Varian blurts out. He’s not gonna lie, he really wants to do what the man says, but he had to do this for Rapunzel. “We are seeing those lanterns.”

“Oh, come on! What is it going to take for me to get my satchel back?!” Flynn said as he frantically waved his arms.

“I  _ will  _ use this,” Varian brings the pan close to the man’s face before Rapunzel jogs up to them.

“Hey guys, what’s going on?” She notices the tension between the two boys.

“Well, he was-” Varian was about to expose Flynn, but was cut off by a rustling bush. Rapunzel leaped on Eugene and Varian hid behind her.

“Is it ruffians? Thugs? Have they come for me?” She screamed as she aimed her pan towards the shifting bush. A small rabbit jumped out of the bush, revealing itself to be the cause of the moving bush. Rapunzel flushed a deep shade of red, embarrassed for the overreaction.

“Stay calm. It can probably smell fear,” Flynn sarcastically said. Rapunzel got off of Flynn’s back and got down to pet the rabbit.

“Sorry, I guess I’m just.. A little bit jumpy,” she said as she got back up and held Varian’s hand.

“Probably best if we avoid ruffians and thugs, though..” Flynn thought again as Rapunzel went on to talk about something that didn’t seem too interesting to him. They were clearly new to the outside and have little to no idea how the world works, so he could use that to his advantage. He thought about how scared Rapunzel was when she thought that a thug was hidden in the bush, and he realized how he was going to scare the strange siblings.

“Are you two hungry? I know a great place for lunch!” Flynn said as enthusiastically as he could.

“Oooh~, where?” Rapunzel asked, matching his enthusiasm.

“Oh, don’t you worry. You’ll know it when you smell it!” Flynn grabbed Rapunzel’s pan and dragged her towards a dirt path.

“I don’t trust where he’s taking us,” Varian whispered to Rapunzel.

“Relax, Varian. He’s just going to take us to a place to eat, and then we go and see the lights!” Rapunzel assured him. “But, just in case,” Rapunzel reached into her dress pocket and pulled out a few vials full of Varian’s chemicals from the tower. “I don’t know what they do, but they were sitting on your desk and got them just in case,” she explained.

“These should work in an emergency. The purple ones are like a glue, while the green ones are like an acid,” Varian mumbled to himself.

“I’m sorry, what about acid?” Flynn overheard a bit of what they were saying.

“Hm? Oh, nothing. Just… wondering if I left the burner on back at the tower,” Varian tried to think of a valid excuse. “But Rapunzel assured me she turned it off.”

“Huh, well, I know it’s around here somewhere. Uhhhhhhhmmmm, aha! There it is! The Snuggly Duckling. Not to worry, it’s a very quaint place. Perfect for both of you. Don’t want you scaring and giving up on this whole endeavor now, do we?” Flynn approached a small pub with a sign that had the words, “The Snuggly Duckling” written on it, accompanied with a duck at the bottom right of the sign.

“Well, I do like ducklings,” Rapunzel had a bad feeling about going inside, especially after Flynn’s last comment.

“Yay!” Flynn squealed and opened the door. “Garcon, your finest table, please!” Flynn yelled as he made his way into the pub. Rapunzel didn’t know what to expect going inside, but she certainly didn’t expect a pub full of big men each carrying a weapon along with rodents running around the room. Varian hid underneath Rapunzel’s hair as she held her pan in defence.

Flynn didn’t seem fazed at all. He continued to push the freckled siblings inside. “You smell that? Take a deep breath through the nose,” he said as he proceeded to do so. He kept rambling on about how every man inside had committed some form of heinous crime and how gross the place was. Varian looked like he was on the verge of a breakdown and Rapunzel wasn’t too far off either.

“Hey, you don’t look so good, kid. Maybe we should get you back home, I mean, this  _ is  _ a five star joint after all. If you can’t handle this place, maybe you should be back in your tower, and..” Flynn pulled both Varian and Rapunzel towards the exit but stopped when the door was slammed shut. A tall and muscular man held a wanted poster with one hand.

“Is this you?” the man grunted out. Flynn squinted his eyes a bit before moving one of the man’s fingers that covered half of the face on the poster to reveal a long and funny looking nose.

Flynn scoffed before saying, “Now they’re just being mean!” Another man walked from behind them and chuckled.

“That’s him alright,” the hooked man chuckled. He looked at a younger looking man towards the back and said, “Greno, go find some guards. That reward’s gonna buy me a new hook.” He put his hooked hand under Flynn’s jaw while the man, presumably Greno, nodded and ran outside the pub. Other thugs grabbed Flynn and complained about how they needed the money the most, and before they knew it, all of the men in the room began fighting for the wanted thief.

Rapunzel pleaded for them to stop, but got exasperated when they ignored her. She began hitting them with the pan to catch their attention, but they were too distracted by the thief to even notice. She wrapped her hair around a branch near the ceiling and began to pull it back before letting it go, hitting the hooked man in the process.

“Put him down!” Rapunzel screamed. The hooked man turned his head around so fast she thought it would snap off. “Okay, I don’t know where I am and I need him to take me and my brother to see the lanterns because I’ve been dreaming about them my entire life! Find your humanity! Haven’t any of you ever had a dream?”

The man grabbed his axe from his back and wordlessly made his way towards Rapunzel. Varian fumbled around in his pockets to find a vile that held acid, but stopped when he heard the man’s deep voice say, “I had a dream once.” He looked up at the man, confused as to why he would take his axe out if he meant no harm. He then proceeded to throw it at a man with an accordian who nervously began to play. Ah, that’s why..

He began to sing about how he’s always wanted to be a pianist, playing a piano as he did so. The other men sang along with him and some even joined in and sang about their dreams. All their heads turned to Flynn after each of them had a turn talking about their dreams.

“What about you?” the man with the hook asked him.

“I’m sorry, me?”

“Yeah, what’s your dream?” The thug with the big nose asked.

“No, no, no. I’m sorry boys, but I don’t sing,” Flynn said with a smug look. Every man around him pointed their swords at him, urging him to sing.

Flynn sang about how he wanted to be rich and live on an island by himself. The siblings joined in on the song as well. Rapunzel sang about how she wanted to see the lanterns while Varian sang about wanting to find his real parents, which kind of shocked Rapunzel. They were so invested in the song, that they didn’t notice Gothel listening in on the song. Seconds after finishing the musical number, a man barged inside and exclaimed, “I found the guards!”

Flynn grabbed the siblings’ arms and dragged them behind a table. A hook appeared on his chest and they all stared at the man in shock. He pulled a lever that revealed an old passageway.

“Go. Live your dreams,” the man said and smiled.

“I will,” Flynn answered.

“I was talking to them, your dream stinks,” he told Flynn. The trio made their way into the passageway and the man with the hook closed the entrance.

The tunnel was dark, and Flynn had to use a nearby candle to know where they were going. The walls were littered with cobwebs and there were bones strewn all over the floor with the occasional full skeleton leaning on the wall. 

“That was some show back there,” Flynn tried to make some smalltalk, still not being able to believe what had happened minutes prior.

“Yeah. I didn’t know you could sing, Varian!” Rapunzel complemented her little brother. Varian blushed and said, “You’ve heard me sing before.”

“Well, yeah, but they were just short and funny songs,” Rapunzel pushed aside another pile of bones.

“Hey, yeah, you know, I thought you guys were siblings,” Flynn commented, looking back at the two freckled people.

“Well, we are. It’s just that our Mother isn’t Varian’s biological mom,” Rapunzel explained.

“Huh, so you guys are adopted siblings. Wait, how do you know he has different parents?” Flynn suddenly realized.

Varian opened his mouth to respond, but then he felt the ground shake from underneath him. He turned to look behind him to see a faint light growing stronger by the second along with faint yells that also began to get louder every second. Flynn and Rapunzel must have also seen this, because they grabbed his arm and began running towards the exit of the tunnel. Varian almost fell multiple times, unable to keep up with the other two. 

They made it out and saw a deserted area that was kept dry by a dam that held a lot of water on the other side of its wall. They looked down and saw two men crash out of a blocked tunnel.

“Who’s that?” Varian asked clutching Rapunzel’s hand.

“Uhhmm, they don’t like me,” Flynn explained.

Rapunzel turned around and saw a huge group of guards block the tunnel from where they came from. “Who’s that?”

“They don’t like me either.” A white horse made his way in front of the guards with a loud neigh.

“And that?” the siblings repeated. Flynn pushed them forward and said, “Let’s just assume that everyone here doesn't like me!” Rapunzel gave Flynn her frying pan, accidentally slamming it in his gut. She threw her hair up and wrapped it around a plank of wood high above them. She jumped and swung to another cliff, landing safely. 

Meanwhile, the guards began to attack Flynn and Varian. Varian began using his chemicals to prevent some of the guards from moving forward while Flynn used Rapunzel’s pan to fight all of the guards that managed to avoid the purple glue.

“This ends now, Rider,” a female guard said as she lunged at Flynn.

“Gah! Wait, Cassandra, Cass, Cassie, we’re friends, right?” Flynn tried to distract Cassandra.

“ _ Don’t  _ call me that,” she yelled as she tried to swing at him. She tried to take a step forward before she realized her legs were trapped in a large splatter of purple glue. “What the hell?”

“Ah haha! Nice aim, kid!” Flynn cheered. “Don’t thank me yet, watch out!” Varian warned Flynn when a white horse ran towards Flynn. The white horse managed to equip a dagger and joined in on fighting Flynn. 

Fighting the other guards was easy, but the white horse managed to disarm him. They all saw the pan fall from the great height. The horse aimed his dagger at Flynn’s neck before Rapunzel called out his name and threw her hair towards him. Varian managed to catch her hair and both Flynn and Varian hung on and jumped. Cassandra managed to release herself from the glue and she tried to cut the hair the two boys were clinging on to, barely missing it.

"Shit," she mumbled under her breath.

The horse began to kick a wooden plank that held the dam and made his way to where the trio stood. Rapunzel looked at the dam as the water began to spew out on the other platform. She turned around and saw the boys standing on the water duct, urging her to jump. She managed to escape the horse and landed underneath the ducts and began sprinting away from the two men waiting for them. 

Flynn and Varian began sliding down the ducts and caught up with Rapunzel. They made their way towards a tunnel, hoping to escape. They managed to get inside, but only realized that it was a dead end. Not only that, but a huge boulder came crashing down and blocked the entrance and water began filling up the room. 

They were trapped.


	4. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang escape and make a deal with a scary woman.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for being so late! I got Animal Crossing and completely lost in it and forgot I was writing this. Um, there is a bit of swearing in this chapter as a heads up. And, yeah! Thanks for reading!

They all began looking for a loose rock that might create an exit. Rapunzel and Varian began picking at the rocks above while Flynn looked underwater. When he couldn’t find one, Flynn began crashing and clawing at the walls until he cut his hand on a sharp rock.

“There’s no use. I can’t..I can’t find anything,” Flynn said as he rose up from the water. It was about waist height for Flynn and Rapunzel, but it reached Varian’s collarbone.

Rapunzel tried to go underwater and help Flynn, but he brought her up and explained that there was no way they could see underwater.

“Varian, you still have your chemicals, right? Can- can you try disintegrating one of the rocks?” Rapunzel asked with a bit of hope in her eyes.

“I’m sorry, Rapunzel, but at this point, the acid would mix with the water and burn all of us,” Varian looked away.

Rapunzel’s eyes blurred with tears. She regretted everything that had happened that day. She knew she shouldn’t have left her tower. She knew she shouldn’t have been stupid and followed a dream that she knew to be impossible. She knew she shouldn’t have dragged her brother or a complete stranger out to follow  _ her  _ stupid dream. She knew she should have never had a dream because if she had never had a dream, they wouldn’t be here.

Rapunzel began to shake, tears streaming down her face. Flynn and Varian noticed this and stopped 

“This is all my fault. She was right, I never should have done this,” Rapunzel began to wipe her tears.

“It’s not your fault, Rapunzel. I was the one who kept encouraging you. I was the one who gave you the idea to leave and see the lanterns,” Varian tried his best to deflect the blame from his sister.

They both looked up at both her brother and Flynn and began to apologize to them. “I’m so sorry, Varian. I’m so, so, sorry, Flynn. I never should have dragged you two into this…”

“Eugene,” Flynn blurted out. The siblings looked up at him, confusion covering their face. “What?”

“My real name is Eugene Fitzherbert,” Flynn confessed. Varian let out a chuckle and Rapunzel couldn’t help but smile a bit. “Someone might as well know.”

“I have magic hair that glows when I sing,” Rapunzel confessed as well. “What?” Eugene didn’t believe her. Something clicked in Rapunzel’s brain as she repeated, “I have magic hair that glows when I sing!” She began to sing a song as fast as she could before the water rose too high. The room stayed dark for a second before Rapunzel’s hair glowed a golden color. Eugene accidentally opened his mouth in awe before quickly closing it. They saw as the hair was pulled a bit, revealing a small gap in the rocks, letting bits of water out.

Varian signaled for the group to stand back before a large rock pierced the hole and retracted. The hole was thankfully big enough to let each of them out of the small tunnel and they each took turns swimming out. They fell into a small lake and quickly made their way to dry land. 

“We made it. We’re alive… We’re alive!” Rapunzel laughed as she got up and began running around.

“What the fuck just happened? Her hair glows and- and there was a rock that shot up out of nowhere- and her hair glows. Why does her hair glow?!” Eugene screamed at the chameleon.

Varian chuckled a bit as he tried to dry his hair. “It doesn’t  _ just  _ glow.”

Eugene looked back down at the chameleon who had a smug look on his face. “W-why is he smiling at me?”

  
  


* * *

The trio found themselves in a large forest, making their way to a kingdom Eugene dubbed, “Corona.” They made small talk as they made their way through the woods.

“Whoa, what is that?” Varian pointed towards a dark area in the forest. Eugene quickly turned his head towards where Varian pointed at. He squinted his eyes before he saw something quickly skitter across the dark area and towards a nearby bush.

“Stay, back. It could be anything,” Eugene said as he stood in front of the freckled siblings. Varian held on to Rapunzel’s dress in fear as she aimed her frying pan towards the moving bush. There was no sound other than the rustling bush in front of them and after a few tense seconds, a small creature jumped out of the bush.

“What...what is it?” Rapunzel asked as she stared at the small rodent. Neither Rapunzel nor Varian had seen a creature anything like the one standing before them. It looked like a mixture of a small fox and a panda, but moved lazily like a cat.

“It’s a raccoon,” Eugene said. “Don’t let it touch you, those rodents are known for carrying all sorts of diseases. Let’s just move on, the sun is already setting.”

They turned away to keep moving before the raccoon let out a squeak and jumped on Varian and planted on his shoulders. Rapunzel was frozen with fear seeing a potentially dangerous creature on her brother’s shoulder while Eugene kept his eyes on the animal as he slowly approached it.

“Okay, Varian. Try not to move, I’m gonna see if I can try to rip it off your shoulder.”

“Wait!” Varian suddenly said. “I don’t think he means any harm.” Varian noticed Rapunzel and Eugene’s confused faces. Varian was about to explain before the raccoon began to pet his face as if Varian was the animal’s pet. He giggled a bit before the raccoon licked the side of his face.

“Does having odd pets run in the family?” Eugene asked Rapunzel as he stared at the boy and raccoon’s familial interactions.

Rapunzel smiled and said, “Eh, it’s both a blessing and a curse.” She exchanged a look with the chameleon that stood on her shoulder.

“So, what are you going to name him?” Rapunzel asked Varian. He stared at the raccoon as he thought about a name to give him.

“Hmmm, I think I’ll name him...Joseph,” Varian offered to the raccoon. The raccoon scrunched his face and shook his head. “Oh, okay. Um, then how about Ruddiger?” The raccoon seemed to smile and booped the boy’s nose with his paw, although it was more of a smack than anything. 

Varian smiled with Ruddiger until the raccoon began to sniff at Varian’s hand and began licking it. Varian let out a small “ow” and hissed a bit when Ruddiger licked his mangled finger.

“Oh, Varian! What happened?” Rapunzel rushed to Varian’s side and examined his wounds. 

“Oh, don’t worry about it. I got them when I fell on my desk. Some of my chemicals fell on my arms...but don’t worry! They don’t hurt!” Varian tried to reassure his sister, but winced when she lightly touched a small burn on his hand. “Mostly,” he added.

“Okay. I’m sorry, Eugene, but we have to stop here. I have to treat Varian’s wounds,” Rapunzel said as she turned towards Eugene. He sighed but agreed to camp out in the woods for the night. He left to gather a bit of firewood while Rapunzel looked for a nearby place to camp out in.

* * *

By the time Eugene returned with a small batch of wood, Rapunzel was sitting next to Varian on a large tree’s roots. Rapunzel began wrapping her hair around Varian’s burnt arms as Eugene started a small fire.

Rapunzel noticed a rather large cut on Eugene’s palm and urged him to sit down with them so she could help him. It took a lot of convincing before Eugene eventually sat down with them.

“So….you’re being strangely cryptic as you wrap your hair over our injured hands,” Eugene commented. He hissed as his hand stung.

“Sorry! Just...don’t.. freak out,” Rapunzel said slowly. After a bit of silence, Rapunzel began to sing the same song as she did when they were in the tunnel. Eugene stared in awe as her hair once again began to glow. Varian giggled a bit as he saw Eugene’s shocked face. He slowly removed the hair from his hand when she finished her song. He gasped when he saw that his injury was gone completely. He opened his mouth, ready to scream.

“Don’t freak out!” Rapunzel shouted before he could make a sound.

“Ahhhmmm, I’m not freaking out, are you freaking out?” He asked as he looked over at Varian who shook his head. “No? You sure? I’m just.. interested in your hair and the magical qualities it possesses. How long has it been doing that, exactly?”

“Umm, forever? I guess. Mother says when I was a baby, people tried to cut it. She said they wanted to take it and keep it for themselves. But once it’s cut, it turns brown and presumably loses its power,” Rapunzel explained as she revealed the short brown lock of hair near her ear.

“A gift like that has to be protected,” Varian chimed in. 

“That’s why mother never let us… why we never left and…” Rapunzel’s voice died off.

“You two never left that tower. Was...was the rock also you?” He asked the blonde. She shook her head. “No, that wasn’t me. That was all Varian.” She smiled at her younger brother.

Varian froze on the spot at the mention of his power. Eugene stared at him, waiting for an explanation. “Oh! Well, I mean- I can kind of control the rocks, but they mostly respond to strong emotions. It sounds stupid, I know, but Mother never explained how they really worked or why I couldn’t leave. I mean, it’s not like you can take the power away. But whenever I asked to go outside with her, she said that I needed to stay with Rapunzel in order to protect her.” 

Eugene honestly could not believe what he was hearing. If you were to tell him yesterday that magic was real, he’d laugh in your face and take your money when you weren’t looking.

“Is that all you guys can do?” Eugene cautiously asked the magical siblings.

“Among other things.” Rapunzel vaguely responded.

“Are you planning on going back?” Eugene asked them. “To the tower, I mean.”

“No,” Rapunzel said firmly. “Yes,” Varian said at the same time as his sister. They looked at each other for a bit. Rapunzel opened her mouth to say something, but Varian beat her to it.

“So, uh... Eugene Fitzherbert, huh?”

“Yeah...I’ll spare you the sob story of poor orphan Eugene Fitzherbert. It’s um...it’s a bit of a downer, to say the least,” he said as he stared at the fire. He chuckled a bit as the siblings scooted closer to him and sat cross legged with their hands cupping their cheeks.

“There was this book,” he began, “a book I used to read every night to all the younger kids. The Tales of Flynnigan Rider. Swashbuckling rogue, richest man alive, not bad with the ladies.” He wiggled his eyebrows jokingly towards Rapunzel. The three laughed a bit at the gesture. “Not that he’d ever brag about it, of course,” he clarified.

“Was he a thief too?” Varian asked, mesmerized by the description of the book.

“Uh… well, no. Actually, he had enough money to do whatever he wanted to do. He could go anywhere he wanted to go. And for a kid who had nothing.. I don’t know, I.. it just seemed like the better option.” He turned towards the siblings. “You can’t tell anyone about this, okay? It could ruin my reputation.”

“Ah, we wouldn’t want that,” Rapunzel smiled. “Well, a fake reputation is all a man has!” Eugene smiled back and they stared at each other for a second before Varian cleared his throat. “Well, I should...go and get some more firewood,” Eugene said as he got up. “Mind if I take Ruddiger with me?”

“Not at all,” Varian said as his raccoon made his way towards Eugene.

“Hey, for the record, I think we can agree that we both like Eugene Fitzherbert much better than Flynn Rider,” Rapunzel spoke up. “Well, you guys would be the first...but thank you,” Eugene said as he made his way into the woods. The siblings smiled at each other before they heard a chilling voice.

“Well, I thought he’d never leave!”

They turned around and saw-

“Mother?” Varian asked.

“Hello, dear. If I recall, you shouldn’t even be out in the tower. Let alone out here in this terrifying world,” his mother said coldly.

“How...how did you find us?” Rapunzel asked her. She looked older and much more tired than she did the previous morning.

Gothel turned her attention towards Rapunzel. “Oh, it was easy, really. I just listened to the sound of complete and utter betrayal and followed that,” she said sarcasm practically dripping from her words. “Come now, we’re going home.”

“You don’t understand. We’ve been on this incredible journey, and we’ve seen and learned so much! We’ve met someone to help us and protect us!” Rapunzel flushed. 

“Yes, the wanted thief, now I’m sure you’ll be safe on your ‘journey’! Now, come on,” She grabbed their wrists and began pulling them.

“Mother, wait! I think...I think he likes me,” Rapunzel hoped her mother would understand.

“Likes you? Please, Rapunzel, that’s demented!”

“But mother, I…” Rapunzel began. “This is why you never should have left! Dear, this whole romance that you’ve invented just proves you’re too naive to be here.” Her mother’s booming voice overrode hers. Varian was frozen and just watching from the sidelines. He was too afraid to interfere with them.

“Why would he like you? You’re just a plane and clueless girl! I mean, look at yourself! Do you really think that he’s impressed? Don’t be stupid, just come back home where you can be safe! We can forget any of this happened and we can be a big and happy family! You know that Mother knows..” “No!” Rapunzel blurted out. The look on her mother’s face was enough to tell both Rapunzel and Varian that she had messed up.

“No? Oh,” she chuckled under her breath, “I see how it is. You think that you know better than your own mother, huh? You think that you can trust that thief?” She spat out. “Why don’t you give him this?” She pulled out Eugene’s satchel. Rapunzel’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

“How did she-?” Varian whispered, but his thoughts were interrupted by his mother’s voice “ _ This  _ is why he’s here, don’t let him deceive you! Give it to him and you’ll see,” their mother threw the crown towards Rapunzel. “I will,” Rapunzel responded with a determined look.

“He’ll leave you the second he holds that bag. Go, now. Give it to him!” She walked over to Varian and wrapped the satchel around his neck.

“Mother, wait-” Varian tried to stop her from leaving, but she only ignored him.

“When you find out his true intentions, don’t come crying back to me! Remember, Mother knows best,” she disappeared into the woods.

They stared at the fog for a few seconds before Rapunzel handed Varian the crown. “Keep this safe,” she explained.

"But what if mother's r-"

"She's not." Rapunzel's heart broke when her brother flinched. "I mean... I don't know. This is all happening so fast and," she sighed. "I just don't want it to be true." Varian opened his mouth to say something before Eugene emerged holding planks of wood and rambled on about superpowers or something along those lines. That is until he noticed the tension between the siblings.

“Woah, are you guys alright?” He asked them.

“Hm? OH, yes, yeah. We’re fine. Just..lost in thought,” Rapunzel quickly responded. Eugene stared at them for a bit, before he shrugged it off.

“I mean, ‘cause like- here’s the thing. Superhuman good looks, always had ‘em. Born with it. But superhuman strength. Can you imagine the possibilities? Like-” Eugene rambled as he added wood to the small fire.

Rapunzel was glad Eugene lifted the tension while Varian stayed silent for the rest of the night. Eugene kept rambling until he saw the siblings and animals dozing off. He smiled at the scene of the animals snuggling with the two siblings. He put out the fire before laying down on the grass, slipping into unconsciousness.

* * *

Eugene’s slumber was interrupted when he felt a few droplets of water fall on his face. He ignored it and just assumed it was starting to rain. He didn’t bother to even open his eyes until he heard heavy breathing coming from above him. He looked up and saw a white horse covered in water, presumably from when the dam was broken and the surrounding area was flooded.

Eugene smirked and just said, “Well, I do hope you’re here to apologize.” He chuckled a bit at his joke and laid his head back down. That was until he saw a familiar woman behind the horse with an all too familiar scowl on her face.

She rushed towards him with her eyes filled with rage and began dragging him away from the campsite with the help of the horse. Eugene of course, was strong and didn’t scream and fought back heroically. At least… that’s what Eugene would say if he were telling the story.

Rapunzel shot up when she heard screaming nearby. She saw a horse and woman dragging a screaming Eugene away from where he was sleeping. She ran after him and tried to pull him away from the other two. It ended up becoming a game of tug of war with Eugene being the rope.

“Give me him!” Rapunzel managed to say in between grunts. The woman and horse were still pulling him from his boots.

“He’s a wanted criminal! He’s coming with us!” The woman said through her teeth. They continued pulling until Eugene's boot came off and he was free. The horse took a second to comprehend what just happened before he charged at the thief and the girl.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Rapunzel began flailing her arms in an attempt to stop the horse. She tried to calm down the horse as he desperately looked for an opening. He immediately stopped when he saw the unamused look from a chameleon on top of the girl’s head.

“That’s it. Now, sit!” Both Eugene and the woman stared in confusion and shock when the horse obeyed Rapunzel.

“Now drop the boot.” The horse neighed in denial. “Drop it,” Rapunzel frowned and pointed to the floor. The horse unenthusiastically spat the boot out. The blonde regained her smile and began petting the horse like a dog.

“You’re such a good boy! Yes, you are! What a good boy!” the girl cooed. “Are you tired from chasing this bad man all over this place?” She asked the horse. He put a sad face and nodded.

“Excuse me?” Eugene shrieked from behind her. 

“Nobody appreciates you, do they?” Rapunzel hugged the horse as he shook his head. The woman behind the horse rolled her eyes.

“Hey, Maximus, I am literally right here,” she said as she approached the horse.

“Oh, come on, he’s a bad horse!” Eugene said as he shoved his foot in his brown boot. He cringed when he noticed the boot was wet with the horse’s saliva towards the top.

“You’re just mad he caught you,” the woman chuckled. 

Rapunzel stopped petting the horse and looked up at the woman. “Look. Today is..kind of one of the most important days of my life, and I will be eternally grateful if you don’t arrest him…” Rapunzel explained to the woman.

“Absolutely not!” the woman cut off Rapunzel. “Just for twenty-four hours! And...and then you can chase each other to your heart’s content! Okay?” Rapunzel tried to reason with the woman. When she saw no change in her facial expression, she added, “And...it’s also my birthday...just so you know.”

Eugene scoffed and said, “Oh, come on. You think CassAndra will allow that? I wouldn’t be surprised if she-”

“Twenty. Four. Hours,” the woman- Cassandra deadpanned, holding out her hand. Rapunzel happily shook it. “That’s all I ask for!”

“What exactly are you going to do with him?” Cassandra eyed Rapunzel.

“Well, I need him to take me and my brother to see- Oh god, Varian!” Rapunzel realized she had left Varian alone. She ran to where he was still sound asleep despite all the yelling and screaming. She giggled a bit as she saw him drooling in his sleep.

“He’s a heavy sleeper, huh?” Eugene said while looking down at the passed out boy.

“He’s a no sleeper. I think this is the most he’s slept in...who knows how long,” Rapunzel looked back down and started shaking her brother. “Hey, Varian. Wake up.”

“Huh?” Varian mumbled something as he opened his eyes and sat up. “Oh, hey Rapunzel- OH FUCK! Don’t stab me!” Varian screamed when he saw Cassandra. She smiled at his outburst.

Rapunzel didn’t have time to scold him on his language before Cassandra chuckled and said, “Why the hell would I stab you?” 

“Well because I attacked...you know what? Nothing! No reason!” Varian grabbed the sleeping raccoon and placed him on his shoulders. “So, uh...are you gonna help us?”

“Well, that depends. What are you guys trying to do?” Cassandra crossed her arms.

“We were planning on going into the capital and seeing the lanterns tonight,” Varian explained. 

“Perfect! The most convenient place to arrest you, Rider,” Cassandra smirked. Eugene swallowed hard and said, “Are we sure we want to drag her along? I mean, I’d rather take the chameleon's tongue in my ear any day over another second with dragon lady over here.” He gestured wildly towards Cassandra.

“I have connections. You need me to get through the capital,” Cassandra frowned at Eugene.

“C’mon, Eugene. Be nice!” 

Cassandra couldn’t hold back her laughter. “Eugene? You name is fucking Eugene? Oh, oh god...that’s rich,” Cassandra wiped a tear from her eye. Eugene shot her a dirty look. “No- no it’s not...it’s….it’s a stupid nickname.”

“Whatever, EuGeNe,” Cassandra laughed once more. “Now, let’s go.” She motioned Max to follow them and the crew made their way to the capital.

  
  


And Rapunzel couldn’t be more excited.


End file.
